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Tips for Blazer Fits

antipattern

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Hi all. I'm looking for advice on blazer sizing. Let me start with what I know about fits and tailoring:

  • I am planning to get the blazer tailored.
  • I am aware that taking in the stomach is feasible while adjusting the chest is practically unfeasible.

I got a Banana Republic blazer the other day. (Yeah, yeah, I know. It's my first one, and BR isn't bad for an introductory brand.) It's a size 42R, "tailored fit". When I put it on and stand normally, it looks great. I like the silhouette when looking at myself from every angle. However, when I cross or raise my arms, it's too tight and restricts my movement.

Obviously, I can't go with this one. But I need advice on how to search.

The "tailored fit" description seems to convey that the arm holes are lowered. Is this causing a problem in combination with my large chest? I like the overall shape, so my gut instinct is to stick with the tailored fit. But if it's my downfall, okay. I'll get the tailor to take in the stomach to avoid tenting.

Should I just size up to a 44 and stick with the tailored fit?

Should I go with a "classic fit" instead to avoid having problems with my larger chest?

Yes, I know I need to just go try stuff on. This weekend, I'm going to do that. I could use advice though as I am new to this realm. Any help would be appreciated.
 

msulinski

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First of all, the chest can be adjusted to a point. There is more room to adjust the waist though. The shoulders are very difficult to adjust. If the jacket does not fit in the shoulders, you probably shouldn't buy it. As a rough guide, the shoulder of the jacket should stop at about your natural shoulder, or possibly extend beyond by .5 inch. The shoulders are too wide if you see divots on the upper arm when looking from the side.

As for the tailored fit designation, this differs brand to brand. It generally means that, for a given jacket size, it will fit tigher in the chest and the waist. For those with developed chests, these types of jackets often don't work. If you can get a decent fit in the shoulders and the chest (for the most part), the waist can be brought in.

Also, tailored fit generally means higher armholes, not lower, though I suppose this varies brand to brand. Higher armholes are going to allow for better movement of the arms. However, a too-tight jacket is going to make it hard to move. You could try sizing up to a 44. Make sure the shoulders aren't too big. Also, it will help if you take some pictures and post them here. Given that you are relatively new to tailored clothing, your idea of a good fit may not be 100% right.
 

antipattern

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Thanks, msulinski.

When I went to the first store, the guy measured my chest and said I'd wear a 40L. Every single jacket in this size fit perfectly, until I tried moving to the slim fits. This threw all the fit in the chest off, even if I moved up a size. No big deal, since I didn't think the regular fits looked bad at all.

Here are a couple of pictures of my favorite of the several I tried on. The edge of the shoulder on this one came barely past my shoulder, no more than half an inch, like you said. There might be some slight "divots" in the sleeve, but it looks like this might be normal for the fabric.






I tried some 40Rs, and although when I initially tried the 40Ls on, I thought the bottom might extend a bit too far, the proportions seemed better with this size and my height (6' 1" or so).

Any input? Also, I'm planning to get the sleeves shortened a tad to show the sleeve of whatever shirt I am wearing underneath, and also get them tightened.
 

msulinski

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At 6'1" I would think you are a 40L, though the jacket looks a touch long in the picture above. Where does the body of the jacket end? A rough guide is that it should cover your rear and end about your thumb knuckle. In the picture, it looks like it ends well past your thumb. I would try a regular.

As you mentioned, if you felt good in the regular fit vs the slim fit, stick with the regular. You look like you could stand to have the jacket taken in a little at the waist by a tailor. This should be a relatively simple procedure.
 

antipattern

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With the regular I could see the bottom part of my pockets and the very bottom of my fly. With the long, both are covered. The regular would be about right using the thumb rule. Also, the advantage of that would be that I wouldn't need to have the bottom tailored to be shorter.

I'll try some more regulars. I do plan to get the stomach taken in a bit, in addition to shortening the sleeves and tightening them a bit.

Thank you for your input!
 

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